


Welcome to Blasto and Friends' World!

by Daniscats



Series: The Incredible Story of Captain Shepard and the Love that Saved the Galaxy! Drabbles and Misc [11]
Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/F, little blue children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-17
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-12-16 11:35:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11827908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daniscats/pseuds/Daniscats
Summary: Written for the Challenge Yourself month of fan fic. The prompt was 'a piece of your life as fan fiction' so of course, this story is a little ridiculous. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual places or actual events is purely intentional.





	Welcome to Blasto and Friends' World!

    Shepard was carrying two of her daughters in the early dawn light of what it already felt like, was going to be a scorching new day on the asari colony of Chroma.  They had brought Jacey back to visit her birth republic of Notari and since they were already on-planet, they decided to travel to the capital city of Paros to visit none other than Blasto and Friends World. It had seemed a good idea at the time it was planned by Shepard but because of the very early morning wake-up and the lack of breakfast thus far, the group was less than happy at the moment. Liara continued wearily pushing Edi in her stroller.   

    "Over a thousand credits for a family of five! The owners of this park should be ashamed of themselves."

    "Come on, Li! Think about the happy faces you will see today. And we can easily afford it."

    "Yes", Liara looked at her half-asleep daughters. "All I see is happy faces. And we can afford it but what about all the other families with children who cannot? It's unethical!"

    "You're just grumpy because you haven't had your tea yet. But you're going to love the breakfast I reserved for us."

    "And why are we here so early?"

    "To beat the crowds! To get the most from the experience and to get the most bang for our buck, we have to arrive here before 'rope drop' and then be one of the last to leave!"

    "We have three young children, Shepard. And it is going to be very warm."

    "Don't worry about it. I have it all planned out. We're going to be one of the first people to get in and we're going to get on all the cool rides before..."

    Shepard stopped speaking and slowed to a stop as they rounded the corner and saw a sea of people from every species known in the galaxy, already lined up to get in the gates. Liara looked at her.

    "It's okay. Don't panic. It only looks like a lot of people but once they open the gates, they will spread out and the park will look almost empty. We got this!"

    Liara just shook her head. 

 

 

    It wasn't until a hour later when they were seated at the special character's breakfast that Shepard had her first doubts about the whole thing. The kids, now fortified with a hearty if unhealthy breakfast full of sugar, had perked up and were more than a little excited to be at the park. Packed around them were hundreds of other families with their equally excited children. The noise in the dining hall was almost enough to break eardrums.

    And then a hush fell over the room and a wave of murmurs went through the crowd. Kids started standing up, craning their necks, all of them looking in the same direction until a shout went up.

    "It's Blasto!", a girl yelled.

    Other children started screaming and squealing  as well. Both Benezia and Jacey stood up and tried to see through the crowd until Benezia gasped.

    "It is Blasto!", Bene yelled excitedly.

    "And his crime-fighting side-kick, Tubbs!", Jacey added gleefully.

    "Basto?", Edi in her high chair asked, trying to see what the other kids were looking at.

     Benezia and Jacey both started running towards the costumed characters when Shepard caught their arms.

    "Hold on there!"

    "But it's Blasto! I have to go meet Blasto!", Benezia said desperately.

    "That's why your Dad took you to this breakfast", Shepard said grinning, more than a little smugly, "Blasto and Tubbs will be coming to this very table just to meet you girls."

    "For real?", Benezia asked, her eyes wide.

    "Yup. For real."

    The girls barely touched the rest of their breakfasts and were bouncing up and down in anticipation as 'Blasto' and 'Tubbs' slowly made the rounds at each table. When they finally made it  to their table, all three girls looked at them with a look of almost religious rapture on their faces. The girls were frozen until 'Blasto' spoke.

    "Hello Girls! I'm Blasto, the galaxy's greatest Spectre...", 'he' paused as 'he' looked at Shepard before getting back on script, "and this is my partner, Tubbs."

    With that, Benezia jumped up, ran to the costumed figure and hugged 'him' with all her might. Edi slid out of her high chair, ran over to the 'volus' 'Tubbs' and tried to throw her arms around the globe-shaped figure. Jacey was more reserved but she was smiling broadly and almost seemed on the verge of tears as they all posed for pictures with the 'heroes' from hundreds of animated vids.

    Jacey then ran back to the table to grab a small datapad there. She returned shyly to them and held it out.

    "I brought my autograph pad. Can you both sign for me?"

    The smiling handler with the characters looked at Shepard as she spoke.

    "I'm sorry, admission to the character breakfast includes a personal visit from the galaxy-famous Blasto and Tubbs as well as a photo but autographs are extra."

    Shepard frowned. "Seriously? I spent a hundred credits a head for this and they can't sign an autograph?"

    Liara looked at Shepard in shock. "You paid 100 credits a person for this?!", she whispered.

    The handler smiled even wider, if that was possible. They all smiled here. Even when they were telling you off or extorting money from you, they were very cheerful. Shepard had to admit, it was more than a little creepy.

    "Of course! Blasto and Tubbs would love to sign your daughter's autograph pad. It will only cost 20 extra credits."

    "They are just bored maidens in costumes!", Liara hissed under her breath.

    Shepard reluctantly punched some buttons on her omni-tool and then passed it over the handler's omni-tool. Benezia ran to the table to grab her autograph pad as the handler added, "each". Shepard glared at her as she brought up her omni-tool again.

 

 

    Another hour later, they were still waiting in line to get into the Blasto and Friends Musical Sing-A-Long Spectacular. The line was out in the bright sun and it was beyond hot already. It wasn't until another hour in a line with three hyper, overheated and over-stimulated kids, that they finally got in to see the show. The girls knew all the lines of the songs from some of their favorite vids, which they had watched over and over and over again, and they sang loudly with the rest of the large room full of hyper, overheated, and over-stimulated kids. It was torture to the ears or auditory canals of any person over the age of twelve.

    When they got out, the girls jumped up and down.

    "Can we go again? Please Daddy!", Benezia asked.

    "Yes, please?", Jacey asked.

    "But you just saw the show! There's a whole park full of rides here!"

    "Please, Daddy", Edi added.

    "Okay. If you girls really want to see it again..."

    "Oh sorry, Girls." Liara smiled at her daughters before winking at Shepard. "That was work. I have to go make a call but your father will take you to go see the show again."

    "Wait!" Shepard shouted to Liara and then moved closer to whisper to her. "Please don't leave me alone with them. Not here. And I think if I have to hear those songs again, I'll die."

    Liara smiled as she walked away. "Better you than me. I'll see you after your show."

    "Traitor!", Shepard yelled after Liara.

 

   A few hours after that, Shepard, Benezia and Jacey found themselves in another long line. The sun was so intense that it seemed to be boring holes into their heads and the humidity was so high that Shepard was literally soaked from head to toe. When they got about half-way through the line, there was a standing cut-out showing how tall a 'Junior Space Ranger' had to be in order to ride. They already knew that Edi wouldn't make the cut so she and Liara had gone elsewhere but Benezia turned out to be just a tad too short.

    "I'm sorry, you're just a little young to ride this one, Space Ranger", the smiling cast member said to Benezia.

    "What?!", Benezia yelled, her face getting purple, though that could have been from the impending heat stroke. "But this is the best ride here!"

    Shepard could tell that her over-tired, overheated, over-stimulated daughter was on the verge of a rare but always spectacular full-blown melt-down, probably literally as well as figuratively. She had to think of something quick. She could just strangle the cast member, citing Spectre authority, and get on the ride anyway. No, too messy and there were kids present. But then kids _were_ resilient...She remembered Jacey's bouncy, light-up shoes.

    She smiled at the smiling cast member and held her hand out to Benezia.

    "Come one, sweetheart, we'll go on another ride."

    Benezia now had tears streaming down her cheeks and her breath was becoming shallow and fast.

    "Bbbbut,  I wanted to go on this ride the most!"

    Shepard leaned down to whisper in her auditory canal.

    "Trust me, Peanut. You're going on this ride."

    Shepard then smiled and allowed the large family of krogan behind them to go ahead of them. Their large bodies would give them cover as they made the switch. Shepard pulled both her daughters to the side and lifted them on top of the retaining wall next to the line.

    "Quick Jacey. Switch shoes with Benezia."

    "Gross!" Benezia said. "I don't wanna wear her shoes. She got cooties."

    "Do you want to go on this ride?"

    Shepard started switching the shoes on her daughters' feet as Jacey spoke, a very concerned look on her face.

    "Daddy, are you sure we should be doing this?"

    "Yes."

    Shepard got Benezia's right shoe on Jacey's right foot. It was a little tight but it should be okay for one ride.

    "But you told us that we should obey the rules because they are there for a reason."

    "This in one of the exceptions."

    Shepard got Jacey's right shoe on Benezia's right foot. It was a little long but it was only one ride.

    "But how do you know when the rule should be followed or when it's one of the exceptions?"

    "Just ask your father and she'll tell you."

    Shepard managed to get the tight shoe on Jacey's left foot and the loose shoe on Benezia's left foot.

    "But how do you know?"

    "I just do. Come on, we don't want to lose our place in line. Now Bene, just kind of rock forward on your toes a little. But not too much. And don't make it look like your standing on your toes!"

    The trio returned to the cast member and her all powerful cutout. Jacey looked nervous as they approached. Benezia looked hopeful.

    "Relax, Jellybean." Shepard murmured to Jacey. "It's not like they are going to arrest us."

    The cast member did a double take when she saw the family but didn't say anything as Benezia held her breath and stood next to the cutout. She rocked forward on her toes just a little bit. The top of her scalp crests just barely touched the line but they were able to pass. Shepard noticed a group of what looked to be krogan and asari adolescents slip into the express line while the cast member was distracted with Benezia.

    About fifteen minutes later, they were so close that they could hear the ride and the screaming coming from it. Benezia was psyched, bouncing on Jacey's shoes. Shepard heard noise behind them coming from the express line. It was the same group of adolescents that passed down the line earlier, only this time they were loud and belligerent because they had already sneaked past the keeper of the ride.

    Shepard vaulted over the railing separating the two sides and stood, arms folded and glaring, right in front of the rule-breakers. The lead krogan skidded to a halt in front of her.

    "Hey!", the large adolescent bellowed, "get out of our way!"

    "The end of line is that way", Shepard pointed behind them, "go there _now_."

    For a moment the krogan seemed to consider before putting his head down and turning around.

    "And I just took your picture with my omni-tool. If I see you in this line again, I'll find out who your clan mother is. I'm sure she wouldn't appreciate what you did here!"

    Shepard vaulted back over the rail to the sound of cheering from the families nearest them. She smiled and nodded as they moved forward again. Shepard decided that this was a teachable moment.  

    "You see, Jacey. The rule that we all need to wait in line for our turn is an important one and should be obeyed. By cutting in line, those kids negatively affected all these people waiting their turn and that's not right. Rule. Getting Benezia in here when she is just a tiny bit too short does not have any negative consequences because I know she'll love it. Exception."

    Shepard was feeling like she had this whole parenting thing down as they finally got on the ride. When it was over less than 5 minutes later, her decision-making skill was confirmed when they exited the ride and Benezia was jubilant, pumping her fists.

    "Woo hoo! That was the best ride ever! Let's go again, Daddy!"

    Jacey, on the other hand, was quiet. When they made it back out into the blazing sun of Chroma, she appeared just a little bit green. She wobbled a little as she walked. Shepard put a hand on her shoulder.

    "Are you okay, Jellybean?"

    "I don't feel so good, Daddy..."

    Shepard got next to her to put an arm around her and pull her close. Jacey stopped walking. Jacey tried to turn her head away but did not quite make it as she threw up, much of it landing on Shepard's shirt. She then ran over to the bushes to release the rest of her overpriced breakfast and lunch.

 

 

 

    A few hours later and the park was closing. The Shepard-T'Soni family limped wearily towards the exits. Liara was literally limping pushing the sound-asleep Edi in her stroller because she had jammed her knee getting out of a ride. Benezia had somehow lost one of Jacey's shoes and was walking slowly in her socks, the remaining shoe in one hand. Jacey had recovered from her stomach upset but was limping from the blister she got from wearing Benezia's shoes, her feet now clad in the Blasto slippers that Shepard had been forced to buy once it was realized that her daughter was in pain.  As for Shepard, she had not felt this tired in years as she stumbled forward wearing her new, too tight and overly-priced Blasto t-shirt.

    Shepard felt a little defeated. She had tried so hard to give her kids the perfect family fun, completely awesome theme park experience. Instead, she spent twice as much as she had expected and had only half the family fun experiences that she planned. They had walked for miles and would likely need days to recover. There had been emotional and physical break-downs. At one point, they had to leave the park and go take a nap in their skycar as they were all too exhausted to continue. Well, lesson learned. They never needed to do this again.

    Shepard groaned as she picked up first Jacey and then Benezia to carry them the rest of the way to the skycar. Both girls laid their heads on their father's shoulder, their eyes droopy.

    "Daddy?", Benezia asked sleepily.

    "Yes, Peanut?"

    "This was so much fun. Can we do it again tomorrow?"

    Shepard craned her neck to look at her daughter when she heard another voice from her other shoulder. Jacey had tears in her eyes as she spoke solemnly.

    "Yes. This was the best day I've ever had in my whole life."

    She looked over to Liara expecting to see an accusing glare. Instead she smiled.

    "It was kind of fun. We aren't due back on Thessia for a few days. Maybe if we get a good night's sleep tonight, we can catch the rest of the rides tomorrow?"


End file.
